Classics & Ancient History
Classics & Ancient History

In this course, we explore the art and architecture of the Greek world, looking in particular at free-standing sculpture (both Archaic and Classical), architectural sculpture, vase painting, and temple architecture. Within each of these...
6 lectures
1:00:13
Prof. Amy Smith
Reading University
Classics & Ancient History

In a special set of two lectures, Dr Elton Barker (Open University) explores the worlds of the Homeric epics, suggesting in particular that both the Iliad and the Odyssey question the use of violence as a means of conflict-resolution. In...
2 lectures
0:31:24
Dr Elton Barker
Open University
Philosophy & Religious Studies
Classics & Ancient History

In this course, Nakul Krishna (University of Oxford) considers some of the key philosophical problems in Plato's Republic. In the first module, he examines the fundamental question that the Republic is trying to answer: "Why should we be just?"....
5 lectures
1:01:24
Dr Nakul Krishna
Cambridge University
Classics & Ancient History

In this course, we discuss four key themes in Homer's Odyssey. In the first module, we concentrate on the concept of oral poetry - the idea that the Odyssey was not originally written down, but passed orally from generation to...
4 lectures
0:28:08
Prof. Edith Hall
King's College London
Classics & Ancient History

In this course, Dr Ed Bispham (University of Oxford) explores Book 15 of Tacitus' Annals. We begin by considering Tacitus as a historian. How does he construct his history, and how much can we trust him? We then give a...
7 lectures
0:56:31
Dr Ed Bispham
Oxford University
Classics & Ancient History

In this module, we explore Euripides' Medea, a tragedy in which a Medea kills her own children to get back at Jason, who has left her for another woman. The course begins by looking at the myth of Medea and...
6 lectures
0:50:51
Dr Lucy Jackson
King's College London
Philosophy & Religious Studies
Classics & Ancient History
This course examines the life of Socrates, before looking at his famous philosophical method and asking, why was Socrates so interested in defining what things mean? After this, we look more closely at two early dialogues of Plato which feature...
4 lectures
0:41:59
Dr Nakul Krishna
Cambridge University
English Literature
Classics & Ancient History

Shakespeare’s most famous – and infamous – tragedies draw on the Roman playwright Seneca for their dramatic form and theatrical style - including ‘Hamlet’, ‘King Lear’, and ‘Titus Andronicus’. Seneca also had a huge influence on Shakespeare’s...
8 lectures
1:41:53
Dr Helen Slaney
Oxford University
Classics & Ancient History

For modern readers, the chorus is one of the most challenging aspects of Greek drama. Yet the chorus is an integral feature of both tragedy and comedy, and to engage fully with the plays, it’s essential to understand the role...
4 lectures
1:03:58
Dr Laura Swift
Open University
Classics & Ancient History

In this course, Dr Andrew Sillett (University of Oxford) provides an introduction to Cicero's life and times through six legal and political speeches, from his first speech (Pro Roscio Amerino), delivered when he was just 26, through the speeches...
6 lectures
1:58:39
Dr Andrew Sillett
Oxford University
Classics & Ancient History

In this course, we explore fifth-century Greek theatre, focusing in particular on the plays of Aeschylus, Sophocles, Euripides, and Aristophanes. In this course, we look at key dramatic conventions of fifth-century theatre, the relationship...
5 lectures
1:12:08
Dr Rosie Wyles
Kent University